Best Place to Get 15-Year-Old Pappy Van Winkle

McCrady’s

Staff Pick

There are a few places in town where you can find the world’s best bourbon. Offhand, we know that Halls Chophouse, Closed for Business, and Cypress all serve Pappy Van Winkle. But if you want to order it from a bartender who will knowingly grin when you point at the bottle on the top shelf, saddle up at McCrady’s. Pappy is the holy grail of dark liquors, from the robust 15-year to the caramel-toffee 23-year. McCrady’s Chef Sean Brock was mistaken for the dishwasher the first time he approached company owner Julian Van Winkle, but has since so proven his knowledge and appreciation for the bourbon (not to mention street cred as one of the nation’s best chefs) that Van Winkle calls himself Brock’s “bastard adopted father.” Brock’s doctor once told him to either cut down on his meat intake or quit drinking whiskey — he’s now a vegetarian five days a week. “(Pappy) gets me so fired up,” says Brock. “Every night before I go to bed, I pour one in a rocks glass — no ice, no water.”